Have you walked the streets of Barcelona and admired the magnificence of the bullfight arenas? Well, the good news is you are safe to walk through them since there aren’t any bulls or bullfights anymore in Barcelona. Nowadays you have the opportunity to enter and visit the arenas, and take a lot of pictures from the inside (and outside) to admire later in the future.
Bullfighting was banned in Barcelona in January 2012 so that’s why you won’t have a first-degree encounter with a bull. If you are reading this article interested in witnessing this historical Spanish tradition, you should visit Madrid and Seville instead. But with bulls or no bulls, the bullfight arenas are a landmark in the city, truly worth of your time. Here’s why.
Related article: Barcelona an antibullfighting city
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Photo by: Carlos Lorenzo via Visualhunt
Las Arenas, or Arenes in Catalan, was built in 1900 and it was the first bull arena in Barcelona. Once a bloody stadium designed by the Catalan architect August Font i Carreras in a Moorish style, this place is now a fantastic shopping mall. The characteristic red brick structure is still there but the Arenas was turned into a state of the art complex, one rare shopping and entertainment center. The architect that reinvented the stadium was Richard Rogers.
The most impressive feature is probably the new rooftop with cafes, restaurants and a stunning 360-degree view of the city.
The address is Plaça d’Espanya, 08014, Barcelona, and the nearest metro is Espanya L1, L3, L5.
Related article: Arenas Barcelona visit a bullring without meeting up any bull
Photo by: Eric Goodwin via VisualHunt.com
The other bullfight arena in the city is the Plaza Monumental de Barcelona, built in 1914. It was the last place where a bullfight was held in Barcelona. It is known as the world’s only Art-Nouveau bull arena, a work of Manuel Joaquim Raspall i Mayol.
These bullring houses are today a small bullfighting museum and the building is open for visits, from the stables to the top of the stands or even the arena. The ticket for the museum costs 6€.
La Monumental has a capacity of 19,582 seats for bullfights or 25,000 for events such as rock concerts – The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Marley, Dire Straits and Bruce Springsteen were a few names that performed in this arena.
You can visit La Monumental in Gran Via de Les Corts Catalanes 749, Barcelona. It is right next to the Monumental metro stop – Purple line L2.
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